From the Editor
A young man in his late twenties – he enjoyed buying clothes. He was by no means wealthy, so he bought in bargain shops. Wanting to appear better, he would transfer the clothes to a designer shop bag, and go home with that. He even joked about it – a way of boasting or living up to appearances. Somehow the label gave him a lift about himself and how he might be seen by some others. A sort of living up to society’s or others’ expectations. He knew others who did the same. Maybe this is about feeling good about the self in some aspect, ways we may pretend so as to impress. It is part of the drive in us all to feel good about ourselves. We try many ways to do this, often looking in the wrong places. We can look to where we live or where we are educated to boast about ourselves, and we sometimes look down on others for the colour of their skin or for their religion. But these do not give a lasting self-love. A lasting good image of ourselves fits in with what Jesus says: ‘love your neighbour as yourself’. To grow in this self-love, there are many things that help: a grateful ac4
ceptance of our good personal qualities and gifts, the love of others who accept us as we are, a realistic view of our faults and failings, the grace of forgiving ourselves, some success in life – all these, among others, contribute to a strong love of self. There is also the self-love that comes from our faith: that God loves us unconditionally, that Jesus died and rose for us, and if that is so, why should I love myself less? We are precious in the eyes of God and carved in love on the palm of God’s hands. A prayer that enhances our self-esteem is to thank God regularly, daily or hourly, for something good in life or about ourselves. If we can be grateful, our self-esteem and love of self is enhanced, and one big thanks each day is to be grateful for being a loved child of God. Note: this issue was edited in early April, before the outbreak of Covid-19 in Ireland. With our candle lit in the oratory we prayed for all readers, promoters and all associated with Messenger, and will do so until the virus ends. Donal Neary SJ
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